ICT in Education:
A Hong Kong Perspective
OER Symposium 2012
18 April 2012
Kenneth Chen
Under Secretary for Education
Education Bureau, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
Email: [email protected]
1. ICT in Education – Where we are2. Vision for the Future – Where we want to be3. Game plan – How we get there4. Useful Links for Follow-Up
Briefing Outline
3
Total capital and recurrent spending (1998 – 2012): Nearly $9 billion
Infrastructure at schools:
Student : Computer ratio – 4 : 1 (secondary) 4.66 : 1 (primary)
All computers are networked and connected to the Internet via Broadband
plus wireless network
All have some kind of e-learning platform
Teachers: All trained and “retrained” on skills and pedagogy
Support: Recurrent grant to schools – $300 million per annum
Status at System Level
4
There should be few, if any, really lagging behind schools on IT in education, however there exist differences amongst schools in terms of degree and sophistication of IT in education practices
Nearly all schools have IT in education development plan incorporated into their school development plan in which improving students’ learning outcome is the most common goal
On average, about 13% of the annual school budget is on implementation of IT in education
Normally schools have 3 – 4 teachers responsible for coordinating IT in education development and 1 – 2 technicians to take care of the IT infrastructure
Status at School level (general observations)
5
Basic – Teaching students computer skills through formal lessons in computer
rooms and in a detached manner
Limit students access to computers for learning
Using IT as a presentation tool
Characterized by having one computer rooms with training-room setting and one desktop computer with projection device in most classrooms
Use of computer facilities by subject teachers not facilitated
Status at School Level (practices)
6
Intermediate – Students acquired most of their computer skills through application of IT in
the learning of school subjects
Students are required/encourage to access learning or revision materials online and are required to submit some of their assignments online
Wide application of multimedia and interactive resources for learning and teaching as well as the Internet for information searching by students
Computers were relatively dispersed with sufficient number in library and other shared spaces for use by students
Campus TV available to engage in media education
Status at School Level (practices)
7
Advanced – Students well versed with computer skills and are considered to be
reasonably IT-literate
e-classes or e-courses are offered online (via e-learning platform) to complement classroom teaching and to cater for diverse learning needs. Students learning records are captured through the e-learning platform
Wide application of collaborative learning tools such as blogs and wikis for learning and teaching
Mobile devices are used for learning outside classroom and campus
Engage in global communication and collaboration with peers through the Internet and/or video conferencing
Status at School Level (practices)
8
All teachers are competent in using IT
Survey results (2005 – 07):
86% primary and 71% secondary school teachers agree that use of IT can make teaching more effective
62% primary and 52% secondary school teachers are confident in selecting appropriate digital resources to teach
Just over 50% of teachers frequently use IT in class
Difficulties cited for not using IT zeroed on the extra time required to source appropriate digital resources and to a lesser extent technical and classroom management problem in deploying IT in classroom teaching.
Status at teacher level
9
Students embraced the use of IT to learn, the same survey mentioned in the last slide indicated that:
90% primary and 80% secondary school students like to use computers to learn in class
85% primary and 60% secondary school students like to use computers to learn beyond school hours
According to Government survey in 2009, 97.3% of households with a primary or secondary school student aged 10 or above has at least one computer at home. Among those computers, 99.1% have access to the Internet (for all school children, the percentage is about 95)
Concern of parents and teachers has shifted from deprivation of digital access to the problems arise from the extensive use of the Internet
Status at student level
System-level context
• PISA 2009 shows significant system performance in reading, mathematics and science
• McKinsey’s 2010 study characterizes HK as one of five “great to excellent” systems that have achieved “sustained improvements”
Strong system performance…
• Encourage school-led innovation and experimentation
• Create additional support mechanisms for teaching professionals
• Cultivate peer-led learning for teachers and principals
… calls for more de-centralization
Sources: OECD-PISA 2009, McKinsey analysis
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To achieve learning objectives through various learning strategies with the aid of information technology.
Why e-Learning in HK?
The overall goal of all IT in Education initiatives is to transform school education – from a textbook-based and teacher-centred mode to an interactive and learner-centred mode of learning
Self-directed learning…Catering to diversified learning
needs…Foundation for life-long learning 12
1. Enhancement of “Depository of Curriculum-based Learning and Teaching Resources”
2. Extra grants for schools to experiment with e-Learning resources
3. Pilot Scheme on the Promotion of e-Learning in schools
4. Building a marketplace for the e-Learning industry
Measures to be implemented
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To look into when and how e-Learning should be implemented in different contexts, as well as the support measures required.
Pilot Scheme
Aims
develop, try out and evaluate when and how e-Learning works best to bring about effective interactive learning, self-directed learning, and cater for learner diversity in different curriculum and school contexts in Hong Kong to facilitate the charting of the way forward for wider adoption of e-Learning in schools; and
explore commercially viable business models for the development of e-Learning resources, to meet needs of schools, teachers and students.
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Pilot Scheme Projects
• Total 98 project proposals submitted
• 21 projects selected, representing 32 primary schools, 18 secondary schools and 11 special schools
• All subject domains are covered across key learning stages
• Average grant of $2.5 million per project
• Cross-sector collaboration across schools, educational publishing and IT sectors
• Diverse set of projects covering development of resources, learning objects and tools across different technology platforms
• Technology neutrality ensured
• Rigorous progress monitoring and effectiveness assessment
HighlightsParticipant profile
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Market Place
• On-Line Ed-Mall to be rolled out by Hong Kong Education City (www.hkedcity.net) with micro-payment and digital rights management capabilities.
• Learning and Teaching Exposition to be held for third consecutive year in HK in second half of 2012.
Useful Links for Follow-Up
Organization URLE-Learning Consortium elearning.org.hk
E-Education Alliance e-education.hk
Association of IT Leaders in Education www.aitle.org.hk
HK Association for Computer Education www.hkace.org.hk
Association of Mobile Technology and Education
www.amte.org.hk
HK Education City www.hkedcity.net
HK Education Bureau www.edb.gov.hk
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